don's report archive

by Donald B. Ardell, Ph. D.

Wellness in the Headlines
(Don's Report to the World)

For those who think about health and lifestyles in a special way, as REAL wellness enthusiasts do, consider the possibility that we are joined, as part of a special allegiance—a tribe. That's right—tribe. The term has variations of meaning. I certainly do not intend that a REAL wellness tribe is like "a nation of savages or uncivilized people," one definition of a tribe. Rather, the tribe meaning I'm suggesting is closer to "a number of species or genera having certain structural characteristics in common." Still, that's not quite it. These explanations, from a dictionary website, "The Everything Development Company, are not as vivid or appropriate to wellness fellow travelers, or co-conspirators, as Seth Godin's concepts of tribe described in his book, Tribes: We Need You To Lead Us (Portfolio Books, 2008).

According to Godin, there are countless tribes in operation today, all over the world, led by leaders via the Internet. Wellites are surely a tribe, in Godin's sense, for such lifestyle enthusiasts are "a group of people connected to one another, connected to a leader and connected to an idea that inspires their passion." Godin claims we all have a need to connect, which explains gangs at one (low) end and, in my view, wellness promoters at an appreciably higher end!  We all want "to be part of a tribe, to contribute to (and take from) a group of like-minded people. We are drawn to leaders and to their ideas, and we can't resist the rush of belonging and the thrill of the new."

Well, fair enough. Sounds like we can all be leaders of REAL wellness as opposed to the sissy defensive wellness that passes for health promotion at the workplace. Tribes are everywhere—they are breaking out all over, so why not start your own? Millions of people are in search of leaders, waiting to connect to create change of one kind or another—why not toward REAL wellness? And people yearn to belong to more than one tribe, according to Godin. So nobody has to leave other tribes to join ours.

A REAL wellness tribe would consist of people who view the focus of wellness not as prevention, risk reduction, illness management, beauty enhancement (the spa approach) or primarily exercise, nutritional awareness and the like. For REAL wellness tribe members, the optimal lifestyle will not principally be the pursuit of health or avoidance of non-health. It will be about enjoying the best quality of life attainable with disciplined, modest but satisfying choices, consistent with varying potentials. REAL wellness complements prevention and all that, but focuses on meaning and purpose in life, critical (evidence-based) thinking guided by science and reason, happiness (and how to experience more of it), ethical choices (applied ethics) and environmental sensitivities.

Godin mentions many tribal leaders in his book, leaders who became change agents using the community-building powers of the Internet. One obvious example is the president-elect, Barack Obama, who raised millions and gained grass roots support as a tribal leader via this new medium. Godin believes some tribes are big, some are small, some are for working together, some are for traveling together and so on. But everyone can now find, assemble and/or lead a tribe. Therefore, if you are not already doing so as a REAL wellness advocate, get going. The state of the nation and the world needs your tribal leadership.

Ready-made tribes can be found at sites like Facebook, Twitter, Craigslist and many others. You don't need a license to practice tribalism for REAL wellness or anything else. You don't need a permit, don't have to pass a test and you need not enroll for special training or certification. Just do it—and make a difference, leading a wellness tribe, your way.

Tribal leaders, called "heretics" by Godin, are described as "engaged, passionate and more powerful and happier than everyone else."

All of this sounds like many of the REAL wellness promoters I know. These leaders support the tribe and the tribe supports them. They put their ideas on the line, believing in the concept that all embrace, confident that it can make a difference in a positive way, that what it attempts is worth doing.

How many pursuits are as personally rewarding and socially beneficial as internet-based tribal wellness leadership?

In Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us, Seth Godin proves himself a creative tribal leader, especially for acolytes seeking a way to promote his ideas about tribes. He has a system, put in place before his book was published, wherein anyone who wanted to join HIS tribe to promote the idea of tribes could do so. Godin would issue the visitor a password and he or she would then enjoy "the privilege of meeting each other, posting thoughts, connecting to big ideas or projects and more." What a deal. It even included advance excerpts from the book and opportunities to contribute to a follow up e-book later on. This guy is good. Maybe you can be an equally enterprising tribal leader for wellness. All the best. Be well. Always look on the bright side of life.

(Note: This essay will be filed in the archives in the MENTAL DOMAIN under the skill area of factual knowledge. Additional articles related to this theme may be found there.)

(Ed. Note: Views expressed in this and other columns are those of the author and not necessarily those of the SeekWellness Editorial Board.)

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